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From bags, suits and shoes to wallets and belts, snakeskin goods are this season’s undoubtable trend. On a recent trip to Indonesia, conservationist Karl Amman did some investigating into the reptile industry.

The former Dutch colony is the largest exporter of snakeskin to south-east Asia, contributing 150,000 bigger pythons, 60,000 smaller ones and hundreds of thousands more lizards per year.

Though claims are made that the snakes are bred and farmed somewhat humanely, this turns out not to be the case. To raise one python to its fully grown state would take eight years and cost thousands, and thereby the slaughterhouses have taken a quicker, cheaper method: buying from hunters. They follow snake trails in the sand and catch them from behind – to avoid being bitten – then tape their mouths shut and throw them into a bag.

The animal is then stored in the bag for days without food or water, then brutally hit with a hammer to induce a partial lack of consciousness, strung up on a hook and filled with water to stretch its skin. They spend hours as such, before finally being skinned. All of this takes place while the snake is alive, and cases were documented of pregnant snakes suffering the same fate.

Meanwhile, these torturous methods could be reduced with a little education: by simply hitting the snake on a certain spot, those doing the killing could bring about a quick, more humane loss of consciousness.

Cruelty is not the only concern relating to the industry: it also poses an environmental threat, including an overpopulation of rodents.

Amman contacted the Convention On International Trade In Endangered Species (CITES) authorities in Geneva but caught up in ‘beaureaucratic red tape’ it will take years before action takes place.

The fashion industry, will need to bring about change, by not buying the snakeskin or ensuring that it comes from a humane background. Amman contacted the headquarters of some of the largest fashion houses, showing them the footage he’d captured, but found that only the Swatch Group has agreed to immediately stop using any wild-caught reptile skin.

Amman said, ‘It is existing legislation which says you cannot import products where cruelty was involved in the production process. And if that can be proven, then there is no question that these countries should adhere to their own laws and stop the import of these products. And if there’s no import, there’s no manufacturing, there’s no selling.’